Machine for delivering articles serially



Feb. 19, 1952. J. B. WILSON MACHINE FOR DELIVERING ARTICLES SERIALLY 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 Filed March 4, 1949 IN VEN TOR. JZHNBJM LaoN,

W4 2? Q/ad.

ATTORNEY.

Feb. I9,' 1952 J. B. WILSON MACHINE FOR DELIVERING ARTICLES SERIALLY 2 SHEETSI-SHEET 2 Filed March 4, 1949 IN V EN TOR. JoHzvB- WJZO'OZV,

Patented Feb. 19, 1952 UNITED STATES 1 :OFFlGE 2,586,281 MACHINE FOR DELIvERiNG Antidotes SERIALLY John B. ffWilSl1, Indianapolis,- Ind.,- assignor:- to Basca Manufacturing 00., .Inc., Indianapolis, Ind., a corporation of Indiana 2 AppIic'a'tion March 4, 1949, Serial No. 79,696

The present inventionrela'tes 'to a machine for delivering articlesserially. The" invention finds par ticular utility in an arrangement for delivering cup-shaped hoods-from a magazine; in which i a stacked supply of such hoods is retained, to milk bottles, or the like progressing, serially, upon a transfer device toward a capping mechanism; and-"therefore it has been illustrated, andwill be described, in thatenvironment. The invention, however, is ofmuch broader utility,- and is claimed generally, so that it will be understood that Ido not'intend my'invention'tobe limited beyond the scope defined in the claims appended hereto.

' The primary object of the invention'is to providea device which; being-actuatedby the movem'en't 'of articles'up'oh a transfer device, will operate-to evacuate a'vacuuni'cup; after pressing that -"cup-against an article to be-withdrawn from a in'agazine; and'will then transport that'article to -a-loca'tion from which it can be discharged to a -d'elivery'chute, breaking thev'acuum and directing" a I spurt of air under pressure against" the fa-rticle 'to' direct it to, and into; the delivery chute. A' further object of'the inventionis to provide a device of the character described in which the -r'nechanical means for reciprocating the'vacuum cup includes pump mechanism so constructed and arranged as toproduce and break "the neces ary "vacuum at proper: times in thecyele of operation --of the device; and to compress and discharge a streamof air; as above described, thereby obviating'-the-necessity for the provision of external vacuum-or pressure pumps. A further object of the invention is to provide an actuating mechanism for elfecting such reciprocation of a character such as to-impart to the movingb'ottles a sufficient mechanical advantage over the pump mechanis'm' to insure against displacement of the bottles-"relative tothe transfer device upon which they are carried. T Further objects of the invention willappear'as the description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of'the above andrelated'obje'cts; my invention may be -embodied in the form illustrated'in'the. accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact,,hfowe er, that the drawings areillustrative only,and.that change'may be made in the'spe'cific construction illustrated'anddescribed, so'long as the scope "of the appended claims is not violated. 'Figi 1" is a perspective view of airna chine 'embodying my" invention, shown in association with a more or less diagrammatic representationlof a transfer device;

"Figf 2"is an elevation of the mechanical means "for actuating" the'picker mechanism; 7

'17 Claims. (01. 22s-i.-es.1)

"-Fig. 3 is an enlarged; fragmental plan view of the power-recei-vingwrend-v ofnwthe driving. mechanism;

-Fig. 4 is a'fragmental elevation of a, picker mechanism;

Fig; 5 is' an enlarged longitudinal section taken substantially on' the line 5-*-5-of Fig-.- 4; and

' Fig. 6 is' a'more'or lessdiagrammatic-perspective-view showing'aniadapter which may-bedesirable 'for use with relatively tall bottles.

Referring more'particularly to' the drawings; 'it

' will be seen that I have indicated. at I0 arotary transfer. table upon which articles-such: as milk bottles ll, may beseriallyf transported from one station cit-machine toii'another 'as',:-for instance,

' from a filling station. toia capping: station. At

the illustrated station, which may be also the fillving'station, caps or h'oods" [2- are loosely dropped .upon the bottles. to be "crimp'ed in place at the capping station (not shown) A'djacent. the table l 0 a pedestal l 3 supports a pestle upon'which is'mount'edyfor vertical'and rotary adjustment, a bracket 15 adap'tedto -be secured in adjusted position upon' sa'id post by oneor more 'set'screws IE or other equivalent fastening means. A" boom IT isfl'supp-orted upon the bracket I5; and is adapted to be locked in suitable adjusted position relative to said bracket by one or more set screws 18, or other equivalent fastening means. The picker mecha- --"'nism' of'the present invention, indicated generallyby the reference numeral I9, is supported at the upper end of the post'Mand includes a base plate 20 and a support for a'inaga'zine 2|. *As' is more clearly illustrated in Fig'. 4', the magazine 2| is so constructed as to retain a plurality of 'caps or hoods l2,- in stacked relation, and in such a manner that a surface 22 of the cap at "oneend of the stack is always exposed. Suitable means,

well known to'the' art a'ndfth'erefore not illustrated in detail,is-provided*at the lower-end of T the-magazine toflreta'in the s'tack'in placabut to yield, when a withdrawing force-is applied to the project into the paths o-f'successive bottles 'I l on pos dc p. to permit withdrawal or that-cap While retaining the remainder of the stack.

' At its outer'end', the boom ll supportsahori- 'zontalplate 23 from which projects upwardly a journal 'pinf24 upon whicha' star wheel 25 is mounted for rotation. The boom isso positioned that successive fingers "of the star wheel 25 will the transfer table lfl'gas said table roates, whereby the star wheel 25 will be turned through by I each successive bottle asit' passes thestar wheel.

Pivotally mounted uponthe plate 23 is an arm 26 supporting, at its outer end, a roller 28 which,

as is most clearly to be seen in Figs. 1 and 3, is disposed in the paths of the fingers of the star wheel 25. It will be readily perceived that, as the star wheel 25 is turned through 90 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, the arm 26 will be swung to a lesser degree in a clockwise direction about its pivot 21, the path of the roller 28 being such as to cause said roller to escape beyond the extremity of the cooperating finger shortly before that finger completes its movement through an arc of 90".

A bumper 29, which will preferably be a rubber ring mounted upon a suitable stud fixed to the plate 23, is disposed in the return path of the arm 26 to limit counterclockwise movement of said finger.

A pin or screw 38 is secured to the arm 26 intermediate the ends thereof, and provides a pivotal connection between said arm and a link 32. Preferably, but not necessarily, a turn buckle 33 is connected between the ends of said link 32, the opposite end of said link being connected to one arm 34 of a bell crank lever 35 suitably mounted for oscillation upon the base plate To the other arm 31 of c 36 of the bracket 15. said lever is connected one end of a second link 38, preferably including a turn buckle 39, the

other end of said link 38 being connected, through a spring 40, with a lever 4| fixed on a rock shaft 42 journalled in suitable bearings on the plate 20. A further spring 43, having one end suitably anchored on the frame of the mechanism (9, is connected to the lever M to resist resiliently any movement of the arm 26 in a clockwise direction from its position illustrated in Fig. 3.

It will be readily apparent that a substantial force must be exerted to rock the shaft 42 against the resistance of the spring 43; and the particular mechanism disclosed herein for receiving force from successive bottles II and transmitting it to the shaft 42 is considered to be of substantial importance. The relationship between the number, length, spacing and contour of the star wheel fingers, the location of the pivot 21 relative to the wheel axis, the distance between the pivot '21 and the pin 30 and that between said pivot and the roller 28, are all factors in providing the necessary mechanical advantage between the bottles and the shaft 42 to guard against the ation of the machine.

possibility of displacing or dislodging the bottles relative to the transfer device l during oper- One preferred set of numerically defined dimensions will be disclosed hereinafter, though it may be broadly stated that the actuating mechanism will be so devised, arranged and proportioned as to make it possible for the bottles, travelling with device ID, to deliver to the power-receiving end of the transmitting train, sufficient force to actuate the mechanism next to be described, without danger of displacement or dislodgement of the bottles relative to the transfer device on which they are travelling.

A lever 44 fixed to the rock shaft 42 has its free end suitably connected through a link 44' with the projecting end of a piston rod 45.

A cylinder 46 (Figs. 1 and is provided with screw sockets 47 through the medium of which said cylinder is mounted upon the frame of the mechanism IS in axially aligned, suitably spaced relation to the magazine 2t. The open ends. of the cylinder 46 are adapted to be closed. by removable heads 48 and 49, the piston rod 45 being slidably mounted in an axial bore the head 48. Reciprocably mounted in the vlinder 46 is a hollow piston to, one end of which is closed by a plug 5!, shown as integral with the rod 45, whereby said piston is operatively connected to said rod. At its other end, the piston is formed with a bore 52 in which is slidably received a reciprocator '53 whose enlarged head 54 is received within the hollow piston body and cooper ates therewith to limit separating movement of the reciprocator 53 with respect to the piston 59. A spring 55 is confined, Within the hollow piston body, between the plug 51 and the reciprocator head 54, resiliently urging said reciprocator toward such separating movement.

The reciprocator 53 is slightly reduced near its headed 'end to define a stop shoulder 14; and the reduced portion of said reciprocator is mounted to slide in an axial bore in the cylinder head 49. Upon its end remote from the piston 50, the reciprocator threadedly supports a suction cup 56, which may preferably be made of rubber or some suitable substitute therefor, and which is formed to provide a resiliently flexible perim etral lip 51. The threaded end of the recipr0-' cator 53 is threadedly engaged in a socket 58 in the stem of the cup 56; and said cup is provided with a passage 59 providing communication between the interior of said cup and a longitudinal passage 60 in the reciprocator 53, which passage communicates with the interior of the hollow piston body. A radial port 5! opens from said passage 6%) into the interior of the cylinder 46.

Adjacent the end of the cylinder 46 closed by the head 49, said cylinder is provided With a radial bleed port 62. For reasons which will appear,- I prefer to provide means for controlling the rate of flow of fiuid through the bleed ort 62, and, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, such means comprises a valve fitting 63 threaded into the port 62 and providing an adjustable needle valve 64. At a point somewhat more remote from the head 49, the cylinder is provided with a radial relief port 65. As clearly to be seen from an inspection of Fig. 5, the piston 50 will mask and close the ports 62 and against fluid fiow therethrough throughout a major portion of the stroke of said piston.

Near that end of the cylinder closed by the head 48, the cylinder is provided with a further radial port 86 into which is threaded a connector fitting 61 carrying a conduit 68 which will preferably be flexible copper tubing. At its remote end, the conduit 63 carries a nozzle 69,

which, as is clearly shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5, is

positioned adjacent the path of the cup 56 and. in the path of a cap 12 supported upon said cup as the cup is retracted from the magazine. The direction in which the nozzle 68 is pointed can be varied by bending the tube 68; but I presently prefer that the tube shall be so directed that a stream of air emanating therefrom will strike the surface 22 of a cap supported on the cup 56, and will fiow into the mouth H of a chute 10, whose tail or discharge end 12 is located for successive registration with the bottles H as they pass the illustrated station.

Preferably, a two-part housing 13 (one part only of which is illustrated) will be provided to enclose the operating parts of the picker mecha-- nism IS.

The operation of the disclosed mechanism will be clear from the above description. The parts will normally rest in the positions illustrated in solid lines in Figs. 1 to 4. As the table It) rotates in 22, counter-clockwise direction, a bottle will engage one finger of the star wheel 25 to turn S 191; wheel tnrough Atthe beginning of that porft 65; the. cap lziwilli come: into engagement rection about its pivotalumounting 121;:thereby' witlr lthesnozzleffi j in. the. manner indicated in shifting the link 32 toward the left to rockithe dotte'drlinesiiniFig. 5; Thus,"as the vacuum holdshaft 42 and lever 44 :in aicou-nter-tcioekwise diin'githe: cap?intplacezonothei'cup 56 is 'broken, the rectin. Thereby-fthe :.-piston h will:bei.moved cap-Y Will -tend to drop Lby; gravity away from-the from. the righthand: end "ofithe cylinder: 46;: as ::cup; the cap lwil-llcomei into'mechanical engage- :vieWed inrFig. 5,*towardthex'position illustrated ment withi theix nozzle 1:69; whereby its .further .z-Lin-that figureei;Shdrtlyzbeforesaidpiston-reaches movement with the cup is arrested, and a" sharp :zl-zits illustrated positi0n;.;the"1ip .51 of the .cup 56 -spurt ofiair;iemanatingifrom the nozzle 69," will cwillaengageiitherkexposedface 22 of the endmost w strikelthei surface" 22; tending to blow the cap icap. l2;in"the :magazine-2l-,-,and almost concur- --.':away from-"the:.1cup1and towardhand into the rentlyrtherewith, theshoulder 14 will engage-the mouth]! "ofrith'echutefltl.

motiongthe arm 2 6 will swing. in atcloekwise. di-

,.;.;inner-ehd:xof thehead 49, whereby furtherad- As has beenfstatedhereinabovauthe dimenr-ivancement OfihST'I'GCiDI'OCaT/OI 53 will be arresti 'sions andfrelative:proportions .of the actuating :.ed; whi1e stheipiston *50 continues to" move formeclianismI-fo1ii the-pistoni rod'ihave been :found =pward, ,compressing: the spring '55 in the-manner toibeioflsomezimportanee. I prefer to install" my .;;il1ustrated. Such :movement of the: piston mechanism"very closeato the filling station" in -'relative to" the reciprocator-z53- will compress the dairyplants, so thata cap'or hoodwill be dropped hair-in theilefthand .endof the cylinder, forcing 1 o'nto each bottle immediately after the filler valve that air to-fiowthrough the port 6!.- and passages 9 has been withdrawn from the bottle in orderto and 59 into theinterior of the cup-55, and minimizefthepossibilityoicontamination'of the flexing the lip 57, torescape between said lip and bottlepouring lip. Preferably, the chutetail]! l.- thet.surface. 22. .The lip .51 is constructed, in a will be -so "close tothe filling station that :each

manner well known intheart, to flex readilyunbottle will engage, actuate, and leave the coopernder-the influence of asuperatmospheric pressure gyating'star wheelifinger during engagement of therewithin, but to resist flexureinwardly. the standard fillinglvalve (not shown) with that -;As. the piston 50 attains the. position illustrated bottle. :Such an arrangement, of course, is of win Fig. 4,;the roller 28 escapes thecooperating further advantage in that the engagement of star wheel finger;- and the spring 43 willreturn thefilling valve withlthe bottle lends increased the .linkage,-t mov ing t-he.lever- 44in a clockwise stability to the bottle-to reducethe possibility .H-direction to shifththe piston.rod 45 towardmthe that; the-:bottle mighti slip relative to theI-transrightasvieWedlinFig. 5. -lnitialmovement. of fer device Ii], orbe overturnedtoridislodged as s the fpiston jfl towardv the right leaves :the recipk a result of .the resistive leffectiof the cooperating rocator 53 stationary until said .pistonengages *st'ar wheel finger.

thenhead 54. ..Thereby, the tchambermcompris While Iido not intendthereby-to be limitedto ingthe lefthand end of the cylinder, the port 6|, particular numericalidimensions or relationships,

.the.passagestfl and .59, and the interior "of the I have foundthe following, specific dimensionsto ,cup .56; is increasedinrvolumetoiestablish a subbe admirably-adapted to iuse inithe handling of .atmosphericpressure therein;..and.as the'recipr :capsoi' hoods for standard glass'milk and? cream rocator-53begins to move with the piston, that bottles in.capacitiesilvarying from one-half pint .Vcap whose surface 22 is engaged by the cup will to one quart and I believe thatthe'same dimenbewithdrawziirom the magazine. sions may: be used'to: handle similar bottles up l'As .the t-leftha-nd end of the cylinderclearsf the :to one gallon capacity For handlingicontainers ,ieportfiz air .willflow intolthat .variable volume oi differing shapes; sizes,' or materials, diiierent jchamber at a rate depending upon the settinglof specific dimensions: may be desirable, though I bethe needle valve 6%. .So long .as the .pistoriISi] z lieve thatrelative-iproportions will remainsub- :fits tightly. within the cylinder 46, a substantial st'antiallyconstant. "Further, while I have shown degreelof bleed through the portq62r is necessary and particularly described a star wheel having order to prevent. the creationof so "high a .defour uniformly spaced fingers, it will be apparent ,gree of vacuum within the cup 156 as todeform that fewer "fingers orimore fin'gers might be arthe surface22 of theaengaged cap i2; but, as the ranged on the star wheel; and that, whi1e'uni piston beginslto wear, after continueduse hthe form' peripheralispacing thereof will usually be .needle valve 64. will belperiodically. progressively desirable, it isconceivable that, in some particuadjusted to decrease the rate of lbleedzuntilrfinally il'ar installation; a none-uniform spacing would be the leakage past .the piston becomes. greater than :preferable. vatheinitial rateof bleed through theneedlevalvef' T In theillustratedyand preferred, embodiment whereupon it .willbe necessary to replace the-pis- V -of the invention, thenythe radially extreme ends ton. The provision of theneedle va1ve.substana of tthe ifingers of. thgstar. whee1 are ang'ularly tiallytincreases the effective life of the pump asspaced 90 from 'each other and extend 5% lsembly as a whole. e'hes' radially from the center "of the post 24, It 'willbe obvious thatthearrangement wherethe -tips of sgid-fin s-bein rounded 01? n a, .by a vacuum is drawn in .the 'above des'cribed inch'wadius. The trailing edge 'ofeach-finger, variable-volume chamber during retraction 'of '--=ada1: ted *to doeoperatively engaged by a bottle, the Piston, resists the force O the Sh e, and -'r-"'is' curvedoutwardly-in the direction of-operative thereby" retards movementof the piston. Even i-otation of the star wheel, upon an arc of a "mov g o y, however, the piston'will'compress eir-ole having an 8 inch radius; while the leading "-f hea he'riehth n d of the cylinderand "edgeof each finger' constitutes a circular arc will force a stream of air to m ve'through the struck on a radius of 7% inches. The center of oon'duit -68-and nozzle-69. 11 When the lefthand end thepost n'is so positioned relative to'the'path of he p st clears e relief pert m; qg'ofbottles on the-table -10 that each advancing -w111- u y broker and the remainder of the bottle firststrikes a'cooperatingfinger at a point return :strokeiof the piston, and its-connected apprdx-imately4' in'chesradially displac d from linkage, will beirapid, whereby a sharp spurtof the ce'nter of said posti l.

lairswillzbe iorcedthrotigh the: nozzle-9. JSubi'l'l heicenter ofthe pivot 2l liesl inches from --:st a-ntial1yconcurrently witliathe iclearing fot ithe', 7:, the center r oi the postikand'"the axis of the roller 28 is 4 inches from said pivot 21, the diameter of the roller 28 being inch. The axis of the pin is located 2 /2 inches from the pivotal axis 2! and 1 inches from the axis of the roller 28. With these proportions, the roller 28 will escape each cooperating finger of the star wheel after the lever 26 has been moved thereby through a 70 arc.

The above arrangement has been found to be operatively effective for use between most standard filling and capping stations in usual dairy installations, and, once the proper relationship has been established, it is ordinarily unnecessary and undesirable to make any changes. However, an occasional installation will be found to be of such character as to provide an unusually stable or an unusually unstable seat for bottles on the transfer device with which my machine is to be associated; and, in order to accommodate such variable conditions, I may form the lever 26 with a plurality of openings 31 with which the pin or screw 30 may be selectively associated. Obviously, if bottles are unusually stable on a transfer device, the pin 30 may be shifted to a position more remote from the pivot 21, thereby elongating the effective stroke of the piston 50; while if the bottles are unusually unstable, for one reason or another, the pin 30 may be shifted to a position closer to the pivot 21, thereby reducing the resistance to rotation of the star wheel offered by the lever 25 and the associated linkage.

From an inspection of Fig. 6 it will be seen that, if the machine of the present inventionis to be used with standard half-pint bottles, such as shown at H, the star wheel fingers must be located at a level fairly close to the transfer device. When handling such bottles, the fingers engage the bottles about half way between the transfer device and the level at which the filler valve engages the bottle mouth, and no trouble is encountered. When, however, taller bottles, such as those of quart capacity indicated at H are used, the level of engagement of the fingers with the bottles is much closer to the usually smooth and frequently wet and slippery table surface than to the bottle mouth which is firmly engaged by the filler valve; and a bottle is sometimes tripped by a finger, the movement of its bottom being arrested while its mouth is carried on by the filler valve, whereby the bottle is overturned.

To guard against such mishaps, I may provide a second star wheel 25' identical in shape with the wheel 25. Dowel pins [5, dependent from the wheel 25 enter openings 16 in the wheel 25, and a central opening H sleeves on the post 24, whereby the wheel 25' is spaced from the wheel 25 but connected to rotate in absolute registry therewith. The Wheel 25' is so located that its fingers will engage bottles of, for instance, quart capacity just below the shoulders 18 thereof so that, in case the bottom of a bottle should tend to slip, under the resistive effect of the wheel 25, the wheel 25 will immediately assume the load and, being so close to the bottle mouth which is firmly supported by the filler valve, will carry the wheel 25 on to the point at which the bottle will escape therefrom.

I have found that the present device operates unfailingly and with high efliciency, drawing its entire operative power from the table II], and requiring no supply of pressure or vacuum, although both vacuum and pressure are produced and utilized in the organization. The spring 40, of course, is provided in order to prevent the possibility of damage to the mechanism in case of obstruction of the movement of the reciprocator I claim as my invention:

1. In a device of the class decribed, a cylinder, a piston mounted for reciprocation in said cylinder, stem means associated with said piston and projecting from said cylinder, a reciprocator having a lost-motion mechanical connection with said piston, a cup having a flexible perimetral lip carried on said reciprocator outside said cylinder, said reciprocator providing a passage always communicating with the interior of said cup and with the interior of said cylinder, a bleed port in said cylinder, a relief port in said cylinder axially spaced from said bleed port, said piston being arranged to mask and close said bleed port and said relief port at times and to open said bleed port prior to opening said relief port as said piston moves in a direction to shift said cup toward said cylinder, and means cooperating with said stem means to reciprocate said piston.

2. The device of claim 1 including valve means associated with said bleed port and adjustable to control variably the rate of fluid flow through said bleed port.

3. The device of claim 1 in which said bleed port and said relief port are both located near one end of said cylinder and in which said cylinder is provided with a further, constantly-open port near its opposite end, said device further ineluding a nozzle located adjacent the path of said cup, and conduit means connecting said nozzle with said constantly-open port.

4. For use with a transfer device for carrying articles serially past a station and a magazine containing stacked elements to be associated serially with said articles, said magazine always exposing a surface of one of said elements at an end of the stack, a chute having a tail located adjacent the path of such articles and a mouth located near said magazine, a vacuum cup, a reciprocator carrying said cup and reciprocable to move said cup past said chute mouth and into engagement with the exposed surface of an element in said magazine, pump means operable to reciprocate said reciprocator and to evacuate said cup during such engagement, and mechanical means connected to drive said pump means, said mechanical means including a power-receiving element located in the path of articles on said transfer device to be shifted thereby and means for returning said power-receiving element after passage of an article.

5. A device of the class described comprising a pump cylinder having a substantially radial relief port near one end thereof and a second port near the other end thereof, a piston reciprocably mounted in said cylinder, said piston masking and closing said relief port during a major portion of its stroke, a reciprocator connected to be reciprocated by said piston, a vacuum cup carried at that end of said reciprocator remote from said piston, said reciprocator being provided with a passage establishing communication between the interior of said pump cylinder and the interior of said cup throughout the active cycle of the piston, and mechanical means for reciprocating said piston.

6. The device of claim 5 in which one end of said piston is provided with an axial bore in which said reciprocator is axially slidably received.

'7. The device of claim 6 including means limiting axial separating movement of said reciprocator relative to said piston, and spring means urging such separating movement.

8. The device of claim in which said cylinder is further provided with a substantially radial bleed port located between said relief port and said one end of said cylinder.

9. The device of claim 8 in which said piston masks and closes said bleed port during a portion of its stroke.

10. The device of claim 9 including valve means dominating said bleed port and adjustable to control variably the rate of fluid flow therethrough.

11. The device of claim 5 in which said cylinder is further provided with a substantially radial bleed port located between said relief port and said one end of said cylinder, and including, valve means dominating said bleed'port and adjustable to control variably the rate of fluid fiow therethrough.

12. In a device of the class described, for use with a transfer device adapted to carry articles serially past a station, a pump comprising a cylinder and a piston reciprocably mounted therein, a lever operatively connected to reciprocate said piston upon oscillation of said lever, and means for operating said lever comprising a star wheel having fingers arranged to move in a path intersecting the paths of articles carried on said transfer device, a second lever having one end pivotally mounted at a point within the orbit of said fingers but eccentric to said wheel, means carried by said lever and swingable with said lever in a path one end of which is within the paths of said fingers and the other end of which is radially outside said lever paths, linkage means connecting said second lever with said firstlever, and means resiliently resisting movement of said levers in one direction.

13. The device of claim 12 in which the fingers of said star wheel are curved outwardly in the direction of rotation of said wheel under the influence of such articles.

14. The device of claim 12 in which said linkage means is connected to said second lever at a point between the pivotal mounting of said second lever and said means carried by said lever.

15. In combination, a transfer device for moving articles relative to a station, a magazine containing stacked elements to be associated serially with said articles, said magazine always exposing a surface of one of said elements at an end of said stack, picker mechanism including a cup having a fiexible lip and movable toward said magazine and into engagement with said exposed surface, and away from said magazine, said picker mechanism further including a vacuum pump, the interior of said cup having communication with said pump and said cup acting, after such engagement with said exposed surface of an element in said magazine, to withdraw the engaged element from said stack, actuating means 10 for said picker mechanism including a member disposed in the path of such articles, said articles successively engaging said member to move the same as said articles move relative to said station, to transmit the entire actuating power to said picker mechanism, and means operatively connecting said member to drive said pump to evacuate said cup upon such engagement and prior to movement of said cup away from said magazine.

16. In a device of the class described for use with a magazine containing stacked elements, said magazine always exposing a surface of one of said elements at an end of said stack, a pump including a cylinder mounted adjacent said magazine, and a piston mounted for reciprocation in said cylinder, stem means associated with said piston and projecting from said cylinder, a reciprocator having a lost-motion mechanical connection with said piston and movable toward and away from said magazine end generally in alignment therewith, a cup having a flexible perimetral lip carried on said reciprocator and presented toward said exposed surface, said reciprocator providing a passage always communicating with the interior of said cup and with the interior of said cylinder, a relief port in said cylinder, said port being closed during a portion of the stroke of said piston as said piston and said reciprocator move away from said magazine and opening communication between the interior of said cylinder and the atmosphere before the piston completes such stroke, and means cooperating with said stem means to reciprocate said piston.

17. 'The device of claim 16 including a bleed port in said cylinder, and means for variably controlling the efiective capacity of said bleed port, said bleed port being opened, during movement of said piston and reciprocator away from said magazine, prior to opening of said relief port.

JOHN B. WILSON.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 660,913 MacKirdy Oct. 30, 1900 1,063,037 Jones May 27, 1913 1,123,348 Minnick Jan. 5, 1915 1,658,837 Derby Feb. 14, 1928 1,788,228 Berkenvelder Jan. 6, 1931 2,002,213 Adams May 21, 1935 2,047,846 Wright et a1. July 14, 1936 2,059,546 Brandenburg Nov. 3, 1936 2,074,815 Tavender et al Mar. 23, 1937 2,304,146 Brinton Dec. 8, 1942 2,349,523 Sonnenberg May 23, 1944 2,361,176 Carvey Oct. 24, 1944 2,397,297 Sonnenberg 1- Mar. 26, 1946 2,417,938 Krueger Mar. 25, 1947 

